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Migraine By Oliver Sacks ( Vintage )
Release Date: 1999-10-05
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List Price: $15.95
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Product Description
"Balanced, authoritative . . . brilliant." --The London Times
"Written by one of the great clinical writers of the twentieth century, Migraine . . . should be read as much for its brilliant insights into the nature of our mental functioning as for its discussion of the migraine." --The New York Times Book Review
The many manifestations of migraine can vary dramatically from one patient to another, even within the same patient at different times. Among the most compelling and perplexing of these symptoms are the strange visual hallucinations and distortions of space, time, and body image which migraineurs sometimes experience. Portrayals of these uncanny states have found their way into many works of art, from the heavenly visions of Hildegard von Bingen to Alice in Wonderland. Dr. Oliver Sacks argues that migraine cannot be understood simply as an illness, but must be viewed as a complex condition with a unique role to play in each individual's life.
"I am sure . . . that any layman who is interested in the relation between the body and mind . . . will find the book as fascinating as I have." --W. H. Auden, The New York Review of Books
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 Medically good but tedious ( ppmoj )
Oliver Sacks is better in theaters than read. I consider "The man who mistook his wife with a hat" the only readable book from him.
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An okay overview of the types of migraine ( keith@mzla.com )
This is a pretty good review of the varieties of migraines and the various symptoms people experience.
However, it does not actually explain the physiology of migraine; the actual cause of migraine.
It was interesting, but didn't really provide any answers, just descriptions.
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 Explains a lot
I have suffered from migraines for years, however, many of my experiences were strictly visual: without pain. I have enjoyed reading Dr. Sacks' work before and this book is no exception to the rule. I am an artist. When I saw the color plates showing what other non artists experienced visually during or before a migraine, I was floored. These images explained it all to me. I have seen the same types of things since I was a child.
Interesting book and very helpful to those who "suffer" from migraine. I put suffer in quotes because I enjoy the visual disturbances unless they occur when I am trying to read or online! I am sorry I didn't purchase this book sooner.
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the best book on migraine
This is very informative, scholarly and interesting at the same time. I read it and look at the illustrations and am amazed at how many of my life's experiences have been related to the migraine. The condition changes - or can change - throughout a lifetime. I had no idea.
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Fascinating ( clarkjb )
I found the book helpful and interesting. I don't know why some reviewer's found it so difficult. It is true that he describes many case studies and that only some of those would coincide with any one person's experience (thank goodness, I'd hate for anyone to have all those symptoms). Perhaps 75% of it did not apply to me personally, but that part was interesting too. Some of the case studies were similar to my father's migraines, some similar to my mother's. My sister and my nephew have slightly different symptoms that were described. The book connected all of them. But, what made me really grateful for the book is that Sacks described (as very rare occurrences) several bizaree incidents in my life which I had never been able to explain. Times when I had told a doctor what I had experienced and had him shrug his shoulders, or even get angry and say, "How can you expect me to diagnose anything based on that?" Or simply not believe me. For many years, migraines ruled my life. It was not unusual for one to last for 3 or 4 days. Intense, unremitting pain. It took a couple of decades for them to be diagnosed. I can't tell you how many times I was treated for sinus infections. Even after diagnosis and referral to a neurologist, there was no treatment that was effective. Then my doctor started telling me about that a new drug would soon be released that might help. I hounded his office, asking if it was out yet. It was delayed and delayed, but at last Imitrex was released, first as an injection, now it is a pill. And for me it works. My doctor says that it works for approximately 70% of migraine sufferers. It changed my life. Now I can take this pill, lie down in a dark room if possible, and an hour later, the headache is gone. My neurologist said that they have now identified a flawed gene that fails to produce a protein that is common in many migraine sufferes. Imitrex interacts with the neuro receptor that is looking for that protein. But like Sacks said, migraines are overdetermined. There are many factors involved and he covered most of them in his book. He missed one. Dehydration plays a major role in my migraines. If my head begins to hurt, the first thing I do is drink a glass of water.
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